Vicar's update 6th October

I hope you enjoyed our Harvest celebrations as much as I did. It was wonderful to see the Church packed for our Whole Church service which Andrew led so well. In the evening 20 of us gathered for our first Open to God evening – the next gathering is at 7.30pm on Sunday 18th October.

Alpha began well last week and continues tomorrow evening (7th October) at 7.30pm. It’s not too late to invite someone or to come yourself. Alpha is such a helpful way to encounter the Christian faith and is suitable for people whether or not they have previously been to a church.

This Saturday we have a clean up and odd job morning (9.30am – 1pm) at Church. It would be great if a good number of us could pitch in even if just for an hour – like me you might not be able to do plumbing or painting but most of us can use a duster and vacuum cleaner! Whatever your ability, just turn up on the day.

On Saturday 17th October at 9am we are holding a Women's Breakfast. Jo Swinney will be speaking about Meeting with God in a Busy World. All women welcome (and their guests) just sign up on the list in the church centre by Sunday 11th October. Donation of £5 per head appreciated to cover costs. More information from Caroline Newbold (caroline@ststephens-ealing.org).

On a personal note, Bishop Pete has asked me to become the next Area Dean of Ealing. This is a role that I will undertake in addition to being Vicar at St Stephen’s but will involve some work with other Parishes in the Ealing Deanery. I will be taking over from Christopher Ramsey, the current Dean, in November. Be assured that my main priority will remain the work that we do together at St Stephen’s as we seek more of God’s Kingdom in this place.